6 May 2020 http://www.painters-online.co.ukLETTERS, EMAILS AND COMMENTS
STAR LETTER
Digital art – yes please!
I have to disagree with the letter from David
Reeves in the March 2020 issue of The Artist. All
media used for art, including digital, have their
good and bad points and there are both good
and bad artists who use them. As someone
who, sadly, lacks natural talent but thoroughly
enjoys using art as a method of expression,
I have wholeheartedly embraced the new
technology and am loving the experience
of learning new tools and techniques, as the
image on the left hopefully shows. Everything
changes with time and we should learn to
accept, if not fully embrace, those changes.
Andy Page, by emailVIEWS
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Follow us on Twitter @artpublishingwill soon pay for itself. Moulding is readily
available online, either in single lengths or
bundles; I keep it simple by using just four
different mouldings (Mainline Mouldings
are excellent and competitive). You can
either glue the mitres together or use
an underpinner, or both, as I do. There
are some good, cheap hand-operated
underpinners available – shop around
and buy the best that you can afford. This
really is something worth considering,
you don’t need a lot of space and I find it
an interesting and useful addition to my
painting.
Alan Bickley, by emailDon’t be fooled
John Allcock’s letter in the March 2020
issue is a good reminder to all of us that
we should not be taken in by scammers.
I sell my work online and this subject
comes up often in forums. There are
numerous variations on the theme- anniversary gift for husband/wife,
long-winded explanations for alternative
payment methods, and many different
user names in use. Don’t be flattered
by their effusive comments about your
artwork, or anything else – they simply
want to part you from your money.
Margaret Mallows, by email
Added bonus
Back in 1966 my wife and I moved
from Sussex to the small market town
of Bourne, Lincolnshire, to take up the
post of PA, and later Sales Manager, to
Michael Warner at a print works adjoining
his father’s news agent and stationery
shop. There were just 23 employees.
When I retired 34 years later we had 190
employees in Warners (Midlands) plc and
a further 90 working in Warners Group
Publications plc.
Imagine my amazement when, having
subscribed to The Artist in January this
year, I discovered that the magazine is
printed and published by Warners. Every
issue will now not only give me artistic
encouragement but also remind me of my
days in Bourne. When Michael’s father and
founder of the company, Lorry Warner,
celebrated 60 years in business, I painted
his portrait. Years later, Michael told me
that at the time of his father’s death, the
portrait was still hanging in his bedroom.
Doug Dear, by emailIn the frame
A question that comes up frequently
on the PaintersOnline forum is ‘What
is the best/cheapest way to frame my
paintings?’ (eg http://www.painters-online.
co.uk/forum/art-materials/frames-cost-
a-bomb-best-prices/). This generally
gets the same response – trawl round
the charity shops for framed prints and
paintings to use, buy bespoke or ready-
made frames or simply take your artwork
to your local framer.
If you go down the charity shop
route (and there is nothing wrong with
upcycling), you will probably find old
and perhaps damaged frames, often
with unfashionable mouldings such as
gold or dark oak, in which to display your
work. And of course you will have to fit
your paintings to the available sizes, as
you would with new ready-made frames,
which isn’t always ideal. Whilst using your
local framer is a good option the outlay
could be considerable if, as I do from time
to time, you hold a one-man show of
around 60 paintings.
My main objective is to show off my
paintings to their full potential, and a
good frame makes all the difference:
the right width, style and colour of
moulding will certainly enhance yourwork. I make my own frames, which is
easier than you may think. There are a
few ways to go about this but if you are
serious about framing, consider buying a
second-hand Morso mitre guillotine. This
long-established Danish manufacturer is
the industry standard when it comes to
guillotines, and you can pick up a good
second-hand model for a very reasonable
price. You’ll achieve accurate clean-cut
mitres, which is essential, all in a matter
of seconds. They aren’t difficult to use,
although some crafting skills would help.
You need to look for the Morso BA bench
top model (below). Expect to pay between
£250 and £400 for a good second-hand
one with side bars and measuring scale
(these are £1,700 new). Whilst this is quite
a large outlay, if you do a lot of framing itMisty Walk, created using
Autodesk Sketchbook app on iPadThis month’s star letter writer will
receive a DVD, My Chinese Vision
by Herman Pekel, worth £28.55,
courtesy of APV Films, telephone
01608 641798, http://www.apvfilms.com,
plus art books or materials from
our in-house store.